1. Leviticus 19:19 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

What is the prohibition in verse 19?

Leviticus 19:19 (ESV)

19 “You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your cattle breed with a different kind. You shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor shall you wear a garment of cloth made of two kinds of material.

The present verse prohibits the mixing of kinds. Two different kinds of domesticated animals are not to be bred. The word for breed (rb‛) literally means to recline. In this instance the verb is in the causative Hiphil stem which carries the meaning, to cause to lie down. This refers to the purposeful interbreeding of animals.